Being a teenager? I don't recommend it
by pixie-chan
Summary: rated R for language in later chapters. the title is irrelevant to the story. romance and possibly a plot in later chapters. enjoy! [guess what potion Harry made!]
1. Potion

**Title: **Being a teenager sucks

**Pairings: ***takes a deep breath* RL/SB, RW/HG, GW/DM, HP/OC, MM/SS (ack, I don't much like the last one, but ish chose the pairings, acos I couldn't decide. Ain't she helpful! ^.^) And possible Dean/Seamus.****

**Warnings:** Some slash in later chapters, probably only mild slash, because I can't write it to save my life.

**A/N: **first hp fanfic, I didn't know how this would turn out, but it seems to be okay. Rest assured there is a plot. Eventually, there will be a plot… now, onto important matters. 

1. You will heed the warnings. There will be mild slash in later chapters. Do NOT come crying to me because you don't like to see Sirius and Remus paired together. Don't flame me because you're homophobic, I have warned you, and I'll warn you again in the chapters that I decide to put slash in.

2. You will review, even if it is to flame me. If I get no reviews, or very little, I will think that nobody is reading this, and I will stop writing it.

3. Constructive criticism is most welcome. If you have ideas, or can point out mistakes, I will be eternally grateful.

4. If you flame me because of the slash (when I write it) I will hunt you down, and drink your blood. I will hang your lifeless body from the flagpole of my school, and we will all throw things at you. Then, we will see which type of acid will eat through your eyeballs the fastest, and have a race. If I lose (which I won't. I'm acing chem.) We will send your body to your family for a decent burial. If I win, (which is certain) we will cover you in melted wax, and stand you in the science lab so the little year sevens can throw things at you. And then possibly cover you in kerosene and set you on fire, those year sevens are pyros (and I am their teacher!) 

5. Yes, I have been known to drink blood on occasion, I want fangs, I hate the sun, and my skin is so pale it's almost white. (Except at the moment, it just borders on extremely pale, acos it's summery where I live.) I'm obsessed with vampires. GET THE HELL OVER IT! Erm… thank you…

Harry rummaged through his potions kit.

"Damn! There's no more rosewood!" he had all the ingredients except one, and he had no way of getting more. 

Harry looked up as he heard a knock on the door. But… nobody at the Dursley's bothered to knock… 

"Who is it?" Harry heard the door being unlocked, and it opened a little.   

"It's Dudley…" Harry was confused. 

"What do you want?" Dudley hesitantly stepped into the room, glancing around nervously, as if at any moment, something magical would jump out and eat him. 

Satisfied that he wasn't about to be hexed, he walked over to the bed, where Harry sat. 

"You have cake," he said simply. Harry looked at him strangely. 

"What? So what if I do!" Dudley grinned. 

"So, I won't tell mum if you share it with me." 

"Now why would I want to do that?" Harry frowned, puzzled. 

"Because…" said Dudley, as if he were speaking to a particularly dim-witted person, "_you_ don't want mum to find out you have cake ant take it from you." Harry smiled. 

"And _you…_"he replied, mimicking Dudley's tone "don't want my escaped murderer godfather to think I'm being starved." 

Dudley paled at this, and then changed tactics. 

"Please… I'm gonna die of starvation!" Harry smiled. 

"Tell you what…" Dudley cheered up instantly. Harry continued. "I have a plate of rock-cakes I can bear to part with…" Dudley was drooling. "On one condition…" Dudley grinned. 

"Anything!" then upon seeing Harry's smirk… "Almost anything" he corrected himself. 

"Okay." Said Harry, "if I give you food, you have to…" he whispered something and Dudley's eyes bugged. 

"What! No way! I can't do that!" Harry looked at him calmly. 

"Well, I can't very well go and get it, I'm locked in here." Dudley paused; you could practically see the gears turning in his tiny brain. 

"Okay," he said finally, "but only if I get the food first." 

"No deal." Harry replied, "I have no reason to believe that you won't take the food, lock the door behind you, and not come back." Dudley looked mildly offended. 

"And what if _you_ cross _me_?" Harry only smiled. 

"You know where to find me." Dudley thought for a moment, and reluctantly agreed, 

"But… what if I can't find any?" Harry handed him a sketch. 

"This is what it looks like. I don't care what you have to do to get it, but get it soon, okay?" Dudley scowled, his fat piggy face scrunching up, and making him look like an overgrown sultana. 

"I'm not going anywhere near you freaks to get it." 

"You don't have to," said Harry "you should be able to find it growing, you know, in nature? Do you remember nature, Dudley?" Dudley was silent, trying to figure out whether or not Harry had just insulted him. "Go!" Dudley grabbed the sketch and retreated to his own room. 

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*

Dudley scowled at the offending sketch. He considered not getting this… this magical plant thing, because it seemed so important to Harry, but his growling stomach made up his mind for him. He needed food, so he'd have to go find it if he wanted to eat. It couldn't be too difficult; scar-head seemed to think it could be found nearby. 

His stomach growled again. He'd better go. 

He got up and stomped angrily down the stairs. Petunia looked worriedly at him. 

"Duddiekins! What's wrong?"

"Nothing." He muttered darkly. "I'm going out."

"Okay Duddie, but be sure to be back in time for dinner, we're having lettuce, cucumber, and tofu!" Dudley smiled

"Okay mum!" then bounded out the door. 

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*

Harry smiled as Dudley dragged himself into the room, bleeding and covered in hives. 

"Oh, I probably should have mentioned that those plants that the rosewood grows in the center of are thorns and poison ivy…" Dudley growled at him and threw the rosewood in Harry's general direction.

"You've got your stupid weed, now, you promised me food." Harry muttered something unintelligible and distractedly threw some of Hagrid's rock cakes to him. Harry looked up. 

"Are you still here? I may not be allowed to use my wand, but I still know how to poison people, now GET OUT!" Dudley scurried out of the room, slamming the door behind him.

Harry rose slowly and walked over to his wardrobe, he looked at it, and then leant against it, pushing it in front of the door, so Dudley couldn't get in when he realized… ("SCAR HEAD!") …that the rock cakes were inedible.

The door rattled in its frame as Dudley beat it with his fists.

"Open this damn door!" Harry leaned against the wardrobe.

"No." he said calmly. Dudley screamed and stamped his fat little feet, making the floor shake. 

"You cheated me! Let me in, or else!" Harry grinned.

"Or what? You'll tell Petunia you tried to break your diet?" Dudley growled. Harry just smiled, and walked over to his bed. He retrieved the cauldron from under it and started to set up. Eventually, the banging on his door subsided. Harry presumed that Dudley had gone to look at shiny things. 

Harry prepared the ingredients: distilled water, shredded shadow root, knotgrass, the juice from three santrica berries, a drop of rosewater, two white honeysuckle flowers, ("borrowed" from aunt Petunia's garden) and the ingredient that Dudley had found, rosewood bark, and the shredded root of rosewood. (He kept the poisonous flowers, just in case.) He placed the ingredients into the cauldron, and stirred gently, waiting for it to boil.

When the potion boiled, he stopped stirring, and let it simmer for five minutes. He stirred it with one white owl feather, (graciously provided by Hedwig,) and poured the finished potion into a vial. He put a stopper in it, and then packed away his potions kit. 

He looked at the potion in his hands, the light shimmering off the opaque, silvery liquid. Finally, he had an astral projection potion…

**A/N: **The ingredients used in the potion, well, most have a purpose. The santrica berry, grows on a tree much like a lemon, but a pale pink colour. It's magical properties include providing energy, and boosting the circulation of a soulless body, such as someone who has been Kissed, or their soul is not there for other magical reasons. Other properties are; it is a relaxant, and it focuses the mind, enhancing the powers of said mind. (My best friend made it up! Thanks ish!) The rosewood, it's um... like a shrub, little cream coloured flowers, that are poisonous when eaten. You use the bark and roots in a lot of homeopathic crap. It has the ability to let the soul loose from the body, so it'd be good for an astral projection potion. (Again, ish told me. She's being nice to me acos I'm writing Harry Potter fanfic, lol.) All the others have some unknown purpose, but you can work it out yourself =P I'm not sharing my potions secrets, so there! =P And Harry got this potion from a book he found on a trip to Diagon Alley, in a little shop dangerously close to Knockturn alley.

Please review, even if it is just to say that you've read it. I'm pathetic, and I need this.

In the next chapter: why the hell does Harry need an astral projection potion???


	2. Astral projection

**Title: **Being a teenager sucks

**Pairings: ***takes a deep breath* RL/SB, RW/HG, GW/DM, HP/OC, MM/SS (ack, I don't much like the last one, but ish chose the pairings, acos I couldn't decide. Ain't she helpful! ^.^) And possible Dean/Seamus.****

**Warnings:** Some slash in later chapters, probably only mild slash, because I can't write it to save my life.

**Disclaimer: **If I owned Harry Potter, don't you think there'd be more blood??? And more slash, for that matter. Lol.

**A/N: **first hp fanfic, I didn't know how this would turn out, but it seems to be okay. Rest assured there is a plot. Eventually, there will be a plot… now, onto important matters. 

You will heed the warnings. There will be mild slash in later chapters. Do NOT come crying to me because you don't like to see Sirius and Remus paired together. Don't flame me because you're homophobic, I have warned you, and I'll warn you again in the chapters that I decide to put slash in.

You will review, even if it is to flame me. If I get no reviews, or very little, I will think that nobody is reading this, and I will stop writing it.

Constructive criticism is most welcome. If you have ideas, or can point out mistakes, I will be eternally grateful.

If you flame me because of the slash (when I write it) I will hunt you down, and drink your blood. I will hang your lifeless body from the flagpole of my school, and we will all throw things at you. Then, we will see which type of acid will eat through your eyeballs the fastest, and have a race. If I lose (which I won't. I'm acing chem.) We will send your body to your family for a decent burial. If I win, (which is certain) we will cover you in melted wax, and stand you in the science lab so the little year sevens can throw things at you. And then possibly cover you in kerosene and set you on fire, those year sevens are pyros (and I am their teacher!) 

Yes, I have been known to drink blood on occasion, I want fangs, I hate the sun, and my skin is so pale it's almost white. (Except at the moment, it just borders on extremely pale, acos it's summery where I live.) I'm obsessed with vampires. GET THE HELL OVER IT! Erm… thank you…

((Okay, Phebes, your cat is in here somewhere. There will be another, I swear!))

Harry lay on his bed, thinking. He'd just barely stopped Dudley getting into his room to beat him up, he was obviously still mad about the rock-cakes incident. 

Aunt Petunia had nearly had a fit when she saw her "poor little Duddiekins" all scratched up. She had blamed it on Harry, even though she had no evidence, so now Harry was locked in his room, and not allowed out, maybe until he had to go back to Hogwarts. It depended if Petunia got over the incident before that. 

He got meager amounts of food given to him twice a day, only once if Vernon couldn't be bothered, so he was surviving mainly off his fast diminishing cake supply. 

He supposed Dudley would calm down eventually, but it was best to keep the wardrobe in front of the door for the time being…

Harry retrieved the astral projection potion from under the floorboards where he had stashed it almost a week before. He'd been waiting for the right time to use it, and now was good, because he suspected he wouldn't be disturbed for several hours, and one hour was all he needed. 

He put one drop of the potion in a glass of water, and the water turned blood red. He drank it all, and then looked around. It didn't seem to be working. He stood up. But what could have gone wrong? He'd followed the directions precisely. He bent to pick up the book and check, then glimpsed his body lying on the bed. The empty glass had fallen to the floor and shattered when his spirit left his body. He cried out in shock, but no sound escaped his lips. So it had worked… he floated over to look at his physical body. It appeared to be sleeping… wait… floated? Cool! This was unbelievable!

He wondered if he could… yes! He could pass through walls! 

Harry floated down the stairs to where Dudley was badgering Petunia for food. 

Past Vernon, who was reading the paper, through the hall, and out the door. No, _through _the door! 

He sped off down the street, passing a cat, which hissed at him, and tried to scratch him. Wait a second! It could see him? But the Dursleys couldn't… 

He passed a dog, but it did not appear to see him. Maybe the cat belonged to a witch? Or maybe cats were just smarter than dogs. (And the Dursleys for that matter.) 

He wondered what Ron would think about his discovery of the potion… 

His surroundings blurred, and he found himself at the burrow. Harry was confused. How did he get here? He noticed Ron in the kitchen trying to nick some of his mother's fresh baked cookies, and moved to ask him how he got here, but of course, Ron could neither see, nor hear him. Which is unfortunate, because at that minute, Mrs. Weasley rounded the corner. Harry tried to warn Ron, but he didn't even feel it when Harry tapped his sholder.

"RONALD WEASLEY WHAT IN THE NAME OF MERLIN ARE YOU DOING!?" Ron hastily put his cookie-filled hands behind his back. 

"Nothing mum" he mumbled through a mouthful of cookies. Mrs. Weasley turned an interesting shade of red, and it looked like she was going to explode any moment. 

Harry decided to go see how Hermione was, before things got too ugly here.

The burrow faded from view, and was replaced by the unfamiliar walls of Hermione's room. 

He looked around. It seemed that Hermione liked a muggle band by the name of Alabaster Box, judging by the posters on the wall. And… EMINEM!?!? Now there's a side of Hermione he'd never known about. 

Hey… where was Hermione anyway? He looked around and spied Crookshanks sleeping soundly on the end of Hermione's bed. 

Hermione lay sleeping on her bed, open book in hand. It was afternoon still; the poor girl must have worn herself out studying. 

Harry felt something, like a pull on his arm, and before he could turn around…

**A/N: **Whee! Cliffhanger! I was going to continue this, but ish was bugging me to post whatever I had. (heh, bet you're sorry now ish…) everybody poke ish!!!    NEVER! *poke* EVER! *poke* DO THAT! *poke* AGAIN! *poke*  oooh! *poke* lol.  


	3. What the?

**Title: **Being a teenager sucks

**Pairings: ***takes a deep breath* RL/SB, RW/HG, GW/DM, HP/OC, MM/SS (ack, I don't much like the last one, but ish chose the pairings, acos I couldn't decide. Ain't she helpful! ^.^) And possible Dean/Seamus.****

**Warnings:** Some slash in later chapters, probably only mild slash, because I can't write it to save my life.

**Disclaimer: **If I owned Harry Potter, don't you think there'd be more blood??? And more slash, for that matter. Lol.

**A/N: **first hp fanfic, I didn't know how this would turn out, but it seems to be okay. Rest assured there is a plot. Eventually, there will be a plot… now, onto important matters. 

You will heed the warnings. There will be mild slash in later chapters. Do NOT come crying to me because you don't like to see Sirius and Remus paired together. Don't flame me because you're homophobic, I have warned you, and I'll warn you again in the chapters that I decide to put slash in.

You will review, even if it is to flame me. If I get no reviews, or very little, I will think that nobody is reading this, and I will stop writing it.

Constructive criticism is most welcome. If you have ideas, or can point out mistakes, I will be eternally grateful.

If you flame me because of the slash (when I write it) I will hunt you down, and drink your blood. I will hang your lifeless body from the flagpole of my school, and we will all throw things at you. Then, we will see which type of acid will eat through your eyeballs the fastest, and have a race. If I lose (which I won't. I'm acing chem.) We will send your body to your family for a decent burial. If I win, (which is certain) we will cover you in melted wax, and stand you in the science lab so the little year sevens can throw things at you. And then possibly cover you in kerosene and set you on fire, those year sevens are pyros (and I am their teacher!) 

Yes, I have been known to drink blood on occasion, I want fangs, I hate the sun, and my skin is so pale it's almost white. (Except at the moment, it just borders on extremely pale, acos it's summery where I live.) I'm obsessed with vampires. GET THE HELL OVER IT! Erm… thank you…

((okay, some of you were asking why he needed the potion, and what he was doing near knockturn alley in the first place… I've put a flashback in, I was gonna make you guess, but I'm not _that_ mean. Well, I am, but…))

Harry opened his eyes as the dizziness subsided. He was back in his body again… had an hour really passed so quickly? 

He sat up and stretched. Well, that's a part of the potion the book didn't mention… you think about someone and you're instantly transported to that person… He remembered the day he'd come across the book…

::Flashback:: 

Petunia and Vernon had dropped him off somewhere in the middle of muggle London, with the strict instructions to be back at that spot in three hours, or they'd leave without him. They were going to Lego land, and Dudley had insisted that they leave Harry here, and, being how they are, Petunia and Vernon agreed.

Harry looked around, noticing a small shop that people seemed to ignore; it was as if they did not see it at all… He moved closer… it was the leaky cauldron! He couldn't believe his luck! Of all the places the Dursleys could have ditched him; it was somewhere he had money to spend! 

He ducked into a nearby alleyway, and carefully removed his invisibility cloak from underneath Dudley's old, oversized jumper. He didn't know why he'd brought the cloak, but he'd had an inkling he'd need it, and it was just as well he had, because if he was recognized, people would wonder why he wasn't with the Dursleys, and send him back, or realize he was alone, and try to kill him. Harry didn't know which was worse.

He slipped through the door into the leaky cauldron, and carefully, so as not to bump into anyone, followed a witch into Diagon alley. 

Harry made his way to Gringotts, removing the cloak, and then stepping inside. Hagrid had given him his vault key, in case of an emergency, and this classified as an emergency, he was starved!

He withdrew some money from his vault, and then put on the invisibility cloak again. He momentarily considered getting some ice-cream at Florian fortescue's ice-cream parlor, but then decided that the less he had to remove the cloak, the better.

He bought some food, enough to last him until he went back to Hogwarts, then remembered there was something else he was going to get.

Harry walked through Diagon alley, under the invisibility cloak, of course. He didn't need to be recognized, not here. He found the little bookshop, just near knockturn alley.

Hagrid had warned him to stay away from here, but nobody could see him. Besides, he could look after himself.

He looked around, good, nobody watching. He removed the cloak, and then stepped into the tiny shop, making sure his hair covered the scar.

The shopkeeper greeted him with a nod, and then went back to serving a customer. Harry looked around the dingy little shop. Cobwebs hung everywhere, and it looked as if the shelves hadn't been dusted in years. He looked at some of the titles; the thirteenth use for dragon's blood, curses and hexes, volumes I, II, III, and IV, 10,000 poisons and their origins, hypnotism: the legal imperious, summoning beasts, invoking the spirits, transmogrification… 

He whirled around as he heard a voice behind him. 

"Can I help you, dear?" The shopkeeper asked. Harry stuttered nervously.

"Oh, I, um… I'm looking for a potion that can let people walk through walls…" the old woman frowned, deep in thought.

"And what would a boy like you want such a difficult potion for, hmmm?" Harry looked her in the eye, his gaze unwavering.

"Sometimes in life," he said, "there are places and people you need to escape." The woman smiled.

"Alright then, I have a book out back with an astral projection potion, that do?" Harry nodded, and the shopkeeper went out back to get the book. 

When she returned, she placed the book on the counter. 

"That'll be eight galleons and four sickles, and if anyone should come across that book in your possession, I didn't sell it to you, got it? A kid like you shouldn't' even be here." Harry nodded and handed her the money. Placing the book in his bag, he left the shop, heading towards the leaky cauldron for a butterbeer before he had to go back and meet the Dursleys. 

::End Flashback::

He sat up, noticing that his dinner had been left near the door while he was lost in thought. He retrieved it, and sat it by his bed.

Harry looked out the window at the night sky; it had gotten dark while he was thinking. 

He was unhappy. Not the usual misery brought about by being stuck with the Dursleys for the summer, but a deep sadness. He missed Sirius; he hadn't seen him in ages.

Harry picked up the vial with the potion in it, and put two more drops in a glass of water. If he couldn't speak with Sirius, he could at least see him. He drank the potion, and then felt the faint, yet familiar feeling of leaving his body. 

Harry thought of Sirius, and his surroundings blurred.

He walked through a house, looking around. He passed a staircase, and floated into the living room. On the couch, he saw Sirius, and… Remus?! Remus was curled up reading a book, and Sirius sat beside him, clearly vexed.

Remus looked up from his book.

"Siri? What's the matter?" Sirius leant back and sighed.

"I'm worried about Harry," About _me?_ Harry thought, "I'd rather he were here instead of with those awful muggles."

"Yes, I know Siri, but unfortunately, circumstances…" he trailed off. "Sirius, worrying yourself sick about him won't help him."

Remus put an arm around him, comforting. "You should get some sleep." He placed a kiss on Sirius' forehead "go to bed, and stop worrying so much, okay?" he rested his forehead against Sirius'. Siris grinned, and kissed Remus full on the lips.

"okay," he said to the stunned Remus, and rose to leave. 

He turned to Remus. "you should sleep soon too, you need more sleep now that the full moon draws near." Remus nodded.

"yes, just as soon as I finish this book, it's quite interesting." Sirius shook his head, grinning.

"You and your books Remy, you're never without one!" Remus smiled. 

"You love me for it." Sirius nodded.

"yes Remy, I do." 

Harry stared at the two, shocked. Sirius… and Remus… wha… His surroundings faded, and he found himself flying over muggle London. He needed to clear his head… 

He could almost feel the cool night air breeze through him as he flew high over the houses. He did a few loops in mid-air, then hovered over the city, thinking.

He didn't know what to think… He never thought that Remus… And Sirius… Harry did a backflip. He was far too tired to think about it now, he'd think about it later.

Almost on command, he felt a tug, and found himself back in his body.

**A/N:** Okay, people were asking why he was near knockturn alley, it was because spells and potions like astral projection are kinda dark magic, even though the one Harry made was using normal potion kit ingredients, mostly. The potion can be used for spying, because when you astrally project, you can't be detected, so it can be used for dark purposes. The book has other quite useful dark spells and potions, with more sinister ingredients, that will appear later in the fic. 


	4. My Head's up here, Ron

****

Title: Being a teenager sucks

****

Pairings: *takes a deep breath* RL/SB, RW/HG, GW/DM, HP/OC, MM/SS (ack, I don't much like the last one, but ish chose the pairings, acos I couldn't decide. Ain't she helpful! ^.^) And possible Dean/Seamus.

Warnings: Some slash in later chapters, probably only mild slash, because I can't write it to save my life.

****

Disclaimer: If I owned Harry Potter, don't you think there'd be more blood??? And more slash, for that matter. Lol.

****

A/N: first hp fanfic, I didn't know how this would turn out, but it seems to be okay. Rest assured there is a plot. Eventually, there will be a plot… now, onto important matters. 

You will heed the warnings. There will be mild slash in later chapters. Do NOT come crying to me because you don't like to see Sirius and Remus paired together. Don't flame me because you're homophobic, I have warned you, and I'll warn you again in the chapters that I decide to put slash in.

You will review, even if it is to flame me. If I get no reviews, or very little, I will think that nobody is reading this, and I will stop writing it.

Constructive criticism is most welcome. If you have ideas, or can point out mistakes, I will be eternally grateful.

If you flame me because of the slash (when I write it) I will hunt you down, and drink your blood. I will hang your lifeless body from the flagpole of my school, and we will all throw things at you. Then, we will see which type of acid will eat through your eyeballs the fastest, and have a race. If I lose (which I won't. I'm acing chem.) We will send your body to your family for a decent burial. If I win, (which is certain) we will cover you in melted wax, and stand you in the science lab so the little year sevens can throw things at you. And then possibly cover you in kerosene and set you on fire, those year sevens are pyros (and I am their teacher!) 

Yes, I have been known to drink blood on occasion, I want fangs, I hate the sun, and my skin is so pale it's almost white. (Except at the moment, it just borders on extremely pale, acos it's summery where I live.) I'm obsessed with vampires. GET THE HELL OVER IT! Erm… thank you…

((okay, they are going into sixth year, and the Dursleys were too afraid of Sirius to lock up Harry's stuff. I know they locked him in his room, but… dammit! This is why I need ish to read over these before I post them! just to clear up some confusion. And I DO TOO LOVE VAMPIRES MORE THAN YOU DO!!! *ahem* erm… on with the fic…? Oh, and Hermione is, as you will see, not dead.))

Harry sat at the train station where the Dursleys had left him. He was a half-hour early, because the Dursleys were taking Dudley to buy some new school trousers before he had to go back to school. He had ripped the seat of his pants. The diet obviously wasn't working. 

Harry hadn't thought about what he had seen at Remus' house since that night, but now was as good a time as any to think.

Sirius… and Remus… He was upset. Not that he had a problem with them being together, but why didn't they tell him…? He became angry. Why? Didn't they trust him? Did they fear that he'd reject them? Dammit! Sirius was the closest thing he had to a father!

His thoughts were interrupted by a cough. Harry looked up. Before him stood a girl wearing jeans, with what appeared to be a song written on them in blue ink. She wore a tight black top with a rose on the front. She tucked a strand of her straight, red-streaked hair behind her ear.

"Hi Harry." Harry stared.

"H-H-Hermione!?!?" she grinned.

"The one and only." Harry was utterly shocked.

"What did you do to yourself?" Hermione sat beside him, her many bangles jingling at every movement.O:P/O:P

"I decided to change my image, the whole bookworm thing was getting kinda boring." Her look changed to one of concern. "Harry, I need to talk to you about something important…I… oh, hi Ron!" Ron stood there staring at Hermione.

"…" Hermione frowned, looking stern.

"Ron Weasley, my face is a little higher than that!" Ron's gaze snapped to her face instant,

"ummm…" he murmured, blushing. "Hi Hermione." Hermione smiled.

"That's better. Now, we'd best get onto platform 9 ¾, the train will be leaving soon." Hermione shot a look at Harry, and mouthed 'we'll talk later' Harry nodded, and they walked through the barrier to get to the platform.

They found an empty compartment on the train, and Harry, Ron, and Hermione sat down. A few minutes later, Draco Malfoy came sauntering into the compartment with his two goons, Crabbe and Goyle behind him.

"Well, if it isn't the weasel. Managed to scrape up enough money for school books this year I see. If only barely." He shot a disdainful look at the tattered books that sat beside Ron. "What did your father have to do for the money, Weasley? Beg?" Crabbe and Goyle laughed idiotically when they realized that Malfoy had made a joke.

Hermione and Harry both had to restrain Ron from punching Malfoy. Draco and his goons left the compartment, grinning. Ron's shouted obscenities following them down the passage of the train.

A few minutes later, Fred and George stopped by, and shared some toffee with them. Ron, unfortunately, ate his, and promptly turned an interesting shade of dark green. He really should have known better than to accept food from his brothers. The twins, laughing, left Ron to figure out how to make his skin the right colour again.

Quite a while later, Ron's face had nearly returned to its original colour. He started to think…

"Hey, Harry, Hermione, either of you seen Ginny?" They shook their heads. "She was meant to be here, I have her school stuff." At that moment, Ginny wandered into the compartment. "Ginny! Where have you been! I was worried!" Ginny raised an eyebrow.

"And since when are you my keeper? I was around." Ron stood.

"You have to let us know where you are! You could have run into Malfoy, and then what would you have done!?"

"I would have bid him a good day," she replied coolly "and gone somewhere else. You are not my father, Ronald Weasley, and I do not answer to you." Ron, who had just gotten over being green, turned red, clenching his fists at his sides.

"I am your brother, Ginny, and it is my responsibility to look after you." Ginny's face went stony.

"Where were you Riddle was eating away at my soul, and taking control of my body." She spat "you didn't even notice that I was slowly dying. And my name is Virginia! Get it through that thick head of yours. Not Ginny, and not Gin. V-I-R-G-I-N-I-A. Got it?" She stormed out of the compartment, grabbing her books as she left. Ron stood, mouth open, watching her go. Ginny stuck her head back into the compartment. "And close your fucking mouth Ron, you look like a goldfish."

She walked until she reached the last compartment, and, seeing that it was empty, threw her books onto the seat and leaned against the wall, seething. Just who does he think he is?

Draco sat in his compartment, listening to the idiotic banter of Crabbe and Goyle. He stood, motioning for them to stay where they were. He needed time alone, away from people. He left the compartment, and looked for an empty one. He reached the end compartment, and looked in to see The Weasley girl there, _she's pretty when she's angry_… he thought to himself, and then shook his head. _What am I thinking! She's a Weasley for Merlin's sake!_

Ginny turned around to see Draco outside the compartment.

"Hi there, you have people you need to get away from too?" Draco stepped into the doorway.

"I might." Ginny smiled, thinking to herself; _he's cute. Too bad my brother hates him. Too bad I don't care what my brother thinks anymore._ She grinned inwardly.

"Well, come in then. I won't bite." Draco stepped into the compartment and leaned against the wall opposite her. Every move calculated. Precise. _He needs to loosen up…_

"Why aren't you with your brother and Potter, and that Hermione girl you're always hanging around with?" Ginny sighed.

"My brother thinks he owns me, and… wait a minute… you didn't call Hermione a mudblood…" Draco shrugged.

"Well, I figure if we're going to be stuck in this compartment together, I might as well try to be civil. It doesn't mean I despise them any less." Ginny frowned.

"You're hardly stuck here. You can leave whenever you choose." Draco looked at her pointedly.

"And go back to my compartment and talk to the two thickest people on this earth? No thanks. I'd rather stay here." Ginny sat down, resting her forehead on the window of the train.

"So, what is it that you're avoiding?" Draco looked at her, raising his eyebrows.

"I already told you. The two brick heads." He replied. Ginny shook her head.

"No, I mean what are you really avoiding?" Draco sighed.

"It's complicated." Ginny raised an eyebrow.

"How complicated, exactly?" Draco walked over to sit on the seat opposite her.

"It's complicated because people expect me to be a clone of my father, just because I'm a Malfoy. They expect me to be cold, emotionless, and act in the exact way that my father considers fitting for a Malfoy to act. I can't be myself."

"I know exactly how you feel." Ginny replied. "Everybody thinks I'm the innocent little girl, unable to think for herself, no brains, just there to look cute. My brother thinks he owns me, and that he can tell me what to do, it's getting rather annoyi-" She was cut off as Draco kissed her.

A/N: have to leave it there peoples, and may I just point out that I still call her Ginny. She doesn't like it, but she let me as long as I didn't make her kiss Harry. She is SO over him ^.^ anyhow, I was going to put a list of my beginnings for personal stories, in a separate story thing… to ask ppl which ones I should continue, but now there's that new site an' all, so I might figure it out later. I think I've answered all the questions in the reviews, so, um, yeah ^.^ need more reviews before I post the next chapter, and you find out what Hermione wanted to tell Harry.


	5. Guardian

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Title: Being a teenager sucks

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Pairings: *takes a deep breath* RL/SB, RW/HG, GW/DM, HP/OC, MM/SS (ack, I don't much like the last one, but ish chose the pairings, acos I couldn't decide. Ain't she helpful! ^.^) And possible Dean/Seamus.

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Warnings: Some slash in later chapters, probably only mild slash, because I can't write it to save my life.

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Disclaimer: If I owned Harry Potter, don't you think there'd be more blood??? And more slash, for that matter. Lol.

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A/N: first hp fanfic, I didn't know how this would turn out, but it seems to be okay. Rest assured there is a plot. Eventually, there will be a plot… now, onto important matters.

You will heed the warnings. There will be mild slash in later chapters. Do NOT come crying to me because you don't like to see Sirius and Remus paired together. Don't flame me because you're homophobic, I have warned you, and I'll warn you again in the chapters that I decide to put slash in.

You will review, even if it is to flame me. If I get no reviews, or very little, I will think that nobody is reading this, and I will stop writing it.

Constructive criticism is most welcome. If you have ideas, or can point out mistakes, I will be eternally grateful.

If you flame me because of the slash (when I write it) I will hunt you down, and drink your blood. I will hang your lifeless body from the flagpole of my school, and we will all throw things at you. Then, we will see which type of acid will eat through your eyeballs the fastest, and have a race. If I lose (which I won't. I'm acing chem.) We will send your body to your family for a decent burial. If I win, (which is certain) we will cover you in melted wax, and stand you in the science lab so the little year sevens can throw things at you. And then possibly cover you in kerosene and set you on fire, those year sevens are pyros (and I am their teacher!) 

Yes, I have been known to drink blood on occasion, I want fangs, I hate the sun, and my skin is so pale it's almost white. (Except at the moment, it just borders on extremely pale, acos it's summery where I live.) I'm obsessed with vampires. GET THE HELL OVER IT! Erm… thank you…

((I'm not getting many reviews, but oh well. I need constructive criticism, because I need to improve my writing. What can I say? I'm a perfectionist. Warning: rant ahead. Most of this gets written at about 3 am, when I can't sleep, and I need something to do that won't wake my mum. That way, she doesn't know I'm writing slash. It's only mild slash, but my mum is majorly homophobic. She says that it's disgusting, and how anyone older than three could call love disgusting is beyond me, but she's entitled to her small-minded opinion. I just thank my lucky stars that I'm straight, or she'd kick me out. I'm currently listening to aerials, by system of a down, which is not helping my mood. Anyhow, on with the fic, yo.))

Hermione dragged Harry out of the compartment, telling Ron that they'd be back. She rounded on him the second they got out into the passageway.

"What the hell did you think you were doing?" Harry stared at her, bewildered.

"What do you mean, Hermione?" She sighed, exasperated.

"The astral projection potion you presumably took. And I do hope you didn't use your wand, it was a potion, wasn't it?" Harry nodded mutely. He was utterly shocked.

"How did you know about that?" Hermione calmed down a little before replying,

"Well, one night I was mixing a potion to turn my hair red-streaked, when that annoying owl, Pig flew into my room with a letter from Ron. I took the letter and let it out, but one of its feathers must have fallen into the potion, because instead of turning my hair a different colour, it allowed me to astrally project. I suspect it was a slightly different potion to the one you took, because I could see you, but you didn't appear to see me. I tugged on your arm, but you disappeared. So what exactly were you doing astrally projecting yourself into my room late at night? I could have been changing!" she stopped her rant, and waited for an answer,

"I, er… umm…" Harry murmured. "Well, it's like this…" He relayed the whole incident, beginning with the shop, and his need to escape his room, and carefully omitting the part about Sirius and Remus, it was not his secret to tell.

Hermione laughed at his description of Ron being caught cookie-handed, but then her expression turned solemn.

"You know you really shouldn't trust a book you got from a place like that, it could be dangerous!" Harry listened, nodding at the appropriate moments. Despite her new image, she was still the same Hermione.

Harry glanced at his watch.

"We really should get changed, we're nearly there." Hermione nodded, and a relieved Harry entered the compartment only to face an angry Ron.

"What were you talking about that you couldn't share with me?" _Oh my gosh, he's jealous!_ Thought Harry to himself. That information could prove useful.

"Hermione was just ranting about how I should be careful this year and not go getting myself in trouble, what with the dark lord and all" well, it wasn't a complete lie… Ron seemed satisfied with this, and he sat down to finish off his Bertie Bott's every flavour beans, swearing a few moments later when he got a wasabi flavoured one.

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Harry, Ron, and Hermione sat at Gryffindor table as the sorting began. Harry wasn't paying much attention, until, near the end of the sorting, Dumbledore spoke.

"Students, we have this year, two transfer students, Shar Hexwood, and her guardian." Two figures entered the side door to the great hall, cloaked in shadows. As they stepped into the light, the great hall gasped at what they saw.

A girl with long, straight black hair, and ice-blue eyes stood by the sorting hat on the stool, and beside her stood a Tall, cloaked, hooded being. A dementor! Wait… Harry didn't hear his parents being murdered… so not a dementor then… no, Dumbledore would never let a dementor into Hogwarts castle. It was okay then.

All that could be seen beneath the hooded cloak was a pair of amber coloured eyes. Dumbledore said it was her guardian… strange… What was it that she was being guarded from?

Dumbledore motioned for the Shar to sit on the stool, and McGonagall placed the sorting hat on her head. The hat spoke to her, whispering to her the possibilities of achievement if she were sorted into Ravenclaw, or maybe Slytherin. She cringed at the mention of Slytherin. She'd rather be somewhere a little safer. So be it… the hat said.

"Gryffindor!" Shar Hexwood rose, and walked over to the Gryffindor table, her guardian walking behind her. She looked Harry straight in the eye, her gaze never wandering to his forehead. She motioned to the seat beside him.

"Is this seat taken?" Harry froze. _Her eyes… _He looked up at her, unable to speak. 

"N-n-no," he finally spoke, "you can sit here." She took a seat beside him, and her guardian sat at her other side, not speaking, and barely moving.

Dumbledore finished speaking, and then, with a wave of his hand, the food appeared. Harry ate as if he had not eaten a decent meal in weeks. In fact, it had been all summer. Shar ate a little, but mostly just moved the food around her plate.

Harry looked at her questioningly, wiping the food off his face.

"Is something wrong?" Shar shook her head. Harry extended his hand to her. "My name's Harry, by the way." Shar smiled.

"I'm Shar" she shook his hand. Harry gestured to the other sixth years.

"This is Ron, Hermione, Dean, Seamus, Neville, Lavender, and Parvati." Shar bowed her head slightly to them in greeting. She gestured to the cloaked figure.

"This is my guardian, Blake." Her guardian acknowledged them with a slight nod, and then continued to ignore everything going on. Hermione shot a wary glance at Blake, and then went back to eating, trying to ignore the unease she felt when she looked at those two.

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When they had finished eating, they got the password from a prefect, and entered the Gryffindor common room. Harry watched in confusion as Shar took a small red crystal and waved it over a spot on the wall, his mouth hung open as first her guardian, and then Shar, walked straight through the wall.

Harry resolved to check the marauder's map later for a hidden chamber that ran off the common room. Hermione appeared behind Harry.

"Oh close your mouth, if she's here to be protected, she wouldn't sleep in the girl's dorm, her guardian is a _guy._" Harry obediently closed his mouth. Hermione's words made sense.

But was Shar's guardian protecting her from someone, or protecting someone from her…

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A/N: *eerie music* oooh, she could be a mass murderer! Oh, wait; she's a Gryffindor… okay… I'm not getting reviews, and I'm beginning to get a little pissed. But that's okay, when this thing has been going for 20 chapters or so, I will reward those who have stuck with this story, and for my friends, who review every chapter, I'll share the blood of the flamer. *bounces off to hunt flamers*


	6. The true colours of the new Hermione

Title: Being a teenager sucks Pairings: *takes a deep breath* RL/SB, RW/HG, GW/DM, HP/OC, MM/SS (ack, I don't much like the last one, but ish chose the pairings, acos I couldn't decide. Ain't she helpful! ^.^) And possible Dean/Seamus. Warnings: Some slash in later chapters, probably only mild slash, because I can't write it to save my life. Disclaimer: If I owned Harry Potter, don't you think there'd be more blood??? And more slash, for that matter. Lol. A/N: first hp fanfic, I didn't know how this would turn out, but it seems to be okay. Rest assured there is a plot. Eventually, there will be a plot. now, onto important matters.  
  
You will heed the warnings. There will be mild slash in later chapters. Do NOT come crying to me because you don't like to see Sirius and Remus paired together. Don't flame me because you're homophobic, I have warned you, and I'll warn you again in the chapters that I decide to put slash in.  
  
You will review, even if it is to flame me. If I get no reviews, or very little, I will think that nobody is reading this, and I will stop writing it.  
  
Constructive criticism is most welcome. If you have ideas, or can point out mistakes, I will be eternally grateful.  
  
If you flame me because of the slash (when I write it) I will hunt you down, and drink your blood. I will hang your lifeless body from the flagpole of my school, and we will all throw things at you. Then, we will see which type of acid will eat through your eyeballs the fastest, and have a race. If I lose (which I won't. I'm acing chem.) We will send your body to your family for a decent burial. If I win, (which is certain) we will cover you in melted wax, and stand you in the science lab so the little year sevens can throw things at you. And then possibly cover you in kerosene and set you on fire, those year sevens are pyros (and I am their teacher!)  
  
Yes, I have been known to drink blood on occasion, I want fangs, I hate the sun, and my skin is so pale it's almost white. (Except at the moment, it just borders on extremely pale, acos it's summery where I live.) I'm obsessed with vampires. GET THE HELL OVER IT! Erm. thank you.  
  
((A/N: please, don't kill me, but I had all these plans for this fic, and I just can't write. Until I get more reviews, I might have to put this fic on ice. I know most of you read, and check back on this fic, you may even be able to tolerate the crappy plot, but what you don't do, is review, and I'm stuck here, thinking nobody cares, when in fact. oh, wait, nobody does. oh. okay then. what are you looking at ?! as you were! Guess what! I'm multi talented! I was an ambulance cadet thingy, and I got the most difficult badge, knowledge of the order. This was years ago, and as far as I know, I still pay my fees, but where I live now, ya have to be 16 to join, so I'm givin' it up for another year or so. Pathetic! I can also use a tablet. I spent $300 Australian dollars on it, is that too much?))  
  
Ginny had been stealing glances at Draco all throughout the great feast, trying to figure out what that kiss meant. She was sure it had been something. but. what if he was just playing some cruel game. he is a Malfoy after all.  
  
After the feast, she didn't have time to catch him and find out, he hurried back to the Slytherin dorms, Crabbe and Goyle following close behind. Dejectedly she walked to the Gryffindor common room, getting the password from a prefect on the way. She went straight to her dorm, and sat on her bed, thinking.  
  
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Draco sat at his desk, writing. The other Slytherin sixth years avoided him; he was looking particularly dangerous tonight. When anyone went near him, he shot a glare at them that threatened a very painful death if they took so much as a single step closer. He finished writing, and left the letter on the desk. He released his peregrine falcon from its cage, and fastened the letter to its leg.  
  
"Take this to the manor." The falcon nipped his finger affectionately, and then flew straight through the stone wall, into the hidden passage that led outside. Professor Snape had created this passage a few years before, so that owls could get in and out of the dungeons. Slytherins seemed to send and receive mail at odd times.  
  
Draco cleared away his desk, and then went to bed early. There was a Hogsmeade day tomorrow, in celebration of the dark lord going into hiding. That damned annoying Potter, he met up with Voldemort in the holidays, and at last he'd heard, the dark lord had retreated. Potter can do no wrong, people worship everything he does, and they're acting like he defeated the dark lord or something. He's only in hiding, and by Draco's reckoning, he was pretty pissed, and probably planning something. His father had been away on "business" which can never be a good sign.  
  
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The next day, Harry, Hermione and Ron walked through Hogsmeade, smiling and joking. Ron soon ran off to Zonko's, so Hermione and Harry went for an ice cream.  
  
As they walked, eating their ice cream, Hermione turned to Harry.  
  
"You know, there's something about that Shar girl that I just don't like." Harry looked at her, wiping the ice cream off his face.  
  
"What do you mean, Hermione? She seems okay to me." Hermione shook her head  
  
"There's something about her that just doesn't add up."  
  
"I think you're reading a little too deeply into things Hermione."  
  
"No I'm not. If she's at Hogwarts to be protected, why does she need a guardian? I mean, you've got the most powerful dark wizard after you, and you don't need a bodyguard. So why does she? Oh my gosh. Harry." Hermione turned pale  
  
"Hermione! What's wrong?" Harry asked,  
  
"I just figured it out. Harry. what if the guardian isn't to protect her from someone, what if it's to protect us from her?"  
  
"Oh now you're just being ridiculous!" Harry scoffed.  
  
"Am I? Think about it Harry."  
  
"Hermione, you know what I think? You're paranoid! " Hermione scowled at him, her hands on her hips.  
  
"Well if that's what you think Harry, then fine. Don't come crying to me when something happens, because I won't care." With that she stormed off, leaving a bewildered Harry gaping at her retreating form. Ron chose that precise moment to appear beside Harry, his arms laden with an assortment of Zonko's best.  
  
"Hey Harry, what's up." he glanced at Hermione's retreating figure. "What the hell's with her?" Harry shook his head.  
  
"I'll never understand her. Never. She just nearly bit my head off because I didn't share her opinion of that new girl."  
  
"Hn," Ron replied, "she's just opinionated is all. Can hardly blame her, that Shar girl is weird, and that guardian of hers gives me the creeps." Harry had to agree, Blake looked startlingly like a dementor, and kinda freaked him out, but Shar seemed all right.  
  
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Draco ducked into an alleyway, after carefully checking that nobody was watching. He regarded the cloaked figure that stood before him with distaste.  
  
"Must you lurk in the shadows so?" He asked, raising an eyebrow. The cloaked figure irritably tossed a small box towards him, seeming to laugh as Draco lunged to catch it.  
  
Draco stood, precious parcel in hand. Brushing the dust off his expensive robes, he glared at the figure.  
  
"Have you any idea how important this is? Be careful!" He growled. The figure removed her hood, smiling at him.  
  
"aww, calm down Draco." She said, trailing an arm across his shoulder. He pushed her hand away, livid with rage.  
  
"Don't.touch.me." he ground out. "Or I'll hex you for showing such disrespect to the heir of the Malfoy estate, and, if you weren't my father's secretary, it would be an unforgivable. Be careful when you are told to transport anything of this significance again, another slip up, and you won't live to regret it." He turned on his heel, cloak billowing dramatically around him as he left the alleyway.  
  
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Ginny wandered around Hogsmeade miserably. She couldn't find Draco anywhere; maybe he was avoiding her. she thought dejectedly. Perhaps he was playing some sick game.  
  
She walked the path by the shrieking shack, hoping to find solitude. What she found, however, was Dean and Seamus. against a wall. Blushing furiously, and murmuring apologies, she made a hasty exit.  
  
She returned to walking around, purchasing an ice cream as the day grew hotter. She needed to find Draco.  
  
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Shar sat on the ground in the dust in a shadowy alleyway, her ice blue eyes strangely reflecting light. Blake stood beside her, and she leant against him.  
  
"Blake?" she murmured,  
  
"Yes Shar?" he replied.  
  
"I think I'm about to pass out." and she promptly did. Blake knelt in the dust by her side, laying a cool hand on her cheek. He lifted her lifeless form effortlessly, and carried her deeper into the dark alleyway. Taking a flask, he unscrewed the lid and splashed water on her face. She opened her eyes, taking the flask in both hands and drinking deeply. She smiled at him.  
  
"I'm sorry." He only smiled at her.  
  
"You should stay out of the sun. You'll dehydrate." She nodded, and leaning on him for support, stood up.  
  
"Thanks. Where would I be without you?"  
  
"hmmm, wherever it is, you don't want to be there." She laughed.  
  
"I'll say."  
  
((A/N: okay, most of that is probably pretty cryptic to you. is Draco just playing a game? What was the strange parcel he had sent from the manor? Will Hermione have PMS forever? Will Voldemort get off his fat lazy ass and kill someone? Was the Dean/Seamus episode relevant to the plot? What is wrong with Shar? What relation is there between her and her mysterious guardian? Find out next chapters, in. whoah, wait, no, I don't think I'll tell you. You'll never know! Mwuhahaha! *dies* mweee! *snork* where's the spoons? *confused* ooo! O_o )) 


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